An Illegal Kunoichi
by Kameko Sakka
Summary: Seeking to prove her worth as a kunoichi exposes Amaya Mizuno, former heiress, to several secrets once kept in shadows. Showing her that not everything is as what it first seems to be, even herself…
1. Mizuno

Once, in the age before the great ninja villages, there existed a clan by the name of Hyuga. Their power was once so great that the mighty Uchiha and Senju clans marveled at their strength. Legends arose of their immense power and none dared try to oppose them.

However, in the shadows, a conflict among the Hyuga arose, tearing the clan apart from within.

One faction of the clan, those who possessed the great Byakugan dojutsu, continually attempted to segregate the others, the ones who specialized in water techniques. The water faction continually opposed the restrictions the Byakugan imposed upon them. No longer did they want to stand being treated like trash, always being thrown aside when they were deemed unworthy to be Hyuga, always being forced to give their lives to protect the Byakugan lineage when they too shared their blood.

Peaceful compromises soon proved unable to halt the mistreatment of the water faction, every attempt simply laughed at and pushed aside, deemed as useless as the lives of those who fought to protect their brothers and sisters. Soon the water faction decided that force was the only way to prevent more suffering of further generations and a battle began.

The conflict stole several lives of both factions. Years passed and both factions soon agreed to halt the needless fighting in order to prevent it from consuming more lives and causing much more suffering. An agreement was reached to live in harmony while remaining separate entities, hopefully preventing another tragedy from reoccurring ever again. Demonstrating their separation, the water faction took the name of Mizuno and became their own clan, no longer showing reliance on those of the Byakugan, who held strongly onto the title of Hyuga as the years passed onward.

Several years passed and the name Mizuno became an unfamiliar one to all ninja. Soon even the conflict between the two clans was referred to as a legend. However, the Hyuga remained a prominent people as years passed. Several knew of their name and abilities of their kekkei genkai. Though it was impossible for the Hyuga to attain the status they once had alongside the Uchiha and Senju clans again.

The Mizuno split off into several, smaller groups, each settling in several areas across the lands while a larger group chose to reside in the newly founded village of Konohagakure along with the Hyuga clan, their ever-present distrust leading them to continually keep watch over them.

While not considered a powerful people, the Mizuno still manages to bring forth several accomplished ninja, all male. However, one kunoichi defies this pattern and seeks to forever change her clan.

This is her story.

* * *

Once she awoke, the first thing she noticed was that someone was shaking her.

"Amaya? Amaya, wake up."

Lifting her head up, Amaya's teal eyes squinted against the light. Rubbing her eyes, her gaze soon landed on the girl sitting next to her.

"What's going on Hinata?" Amaya drawled sleepily as she sat up and stretched her arms behind her.

Hinata gestured towards the front of the classroom, where Naruto sat on the floor tied up while Iruka-sensei lectured him… again.

Amaya sighed and shook her head, what could Naruto have gotten himself into this time? Didn't he know that the graduation exam was tomorrow? Even Amaya wasn't dumb enough to skip class at a time like this.

"I'm at the end of my rope Naruto. You failed the graduation last time and the time before that. Tomorrow you've got another chance and you're messing up again!" Iruka scolded at the blonde boy.

Naruto turned his head away with an _hmpf_, not considering responding to the lectures he was so used to receiving.

Iruka smirked and pointed towards the class. "Fine! Because you missed it Naruto, everyone will review the transformation jutsu!"

The entire class responded with a groan. Amaya sighed as she practically dragged herself out of her seat and followed Hinata to the front of the room. That idiot, they always had to pay for his mistakes. Shoving her hands into the pockets of her knee-length black shorts, she leaned against one of the desks in the front row.

In all honesty she did not hate the blonde, actually she considered him a cool guy most of the time. Though he did have the tendency to get on her nerves at points, it never stopped her from treating him to the occasional bowl of ramen or even skipping class together. Amaya knew that the kid didn't have many friends, if any at all, and she hated seeing how the other students treated him as if he had the plague. After all, everyone needed to have some friends.

Looking up, Amaya saw that she was standing in between Kiba and Hinata. Kiba glanced over and smiled, a gesture that she quickly returned. He was one of Amaya's closest friends since the early days at the academy, though she was constantly berated by the other girls for such. The black-haired girl never gave their looks a second thought; it wasn't her fault she would rather train than talk about boys. Rather she found it hilarious that these very girls thought that they could be ninja.

Once all the students were situated at the front of the room, Iruka called them up one by one. The first one was Sakura Haruno, a girl with pink hair and light green eyes.

"Alright, let's do it. Transform!"

The pink-haired girl's appearance then changed to that of Iruka's.

Iruka nodded before making a quick note, "Good."

Dispelling the jutsu, Sakura bounced up and down with glee, "Yes! I did it!" She then quickly turned to another student. "Sasuke did you see that?!"

"Next: Sasuke Uchiha."

Rolling her eyes, Amaya glanced at the other girls in her class. Besides Hinata and herself, all the girls were practically staring at the dark-haired boy. Truth be told, she was unable to see what they all saw in that kid. It seemed as if all of them were enamored with him just because everyone else was. He was nothing special. Once he performed the technique, Iruka had Naruto go next.

"This is a total waste of time Naruto," Shikamaru complained.

"We always pay for your screw-ups," Ino interjected.

Naruto shrugged their comments off, "Like I care."

The blonde then walked forward and brought his hands together in the necessary sign, but instead of transforming into Iruka-sensei his appearance changed to that of a nude woman. Amaya smirked before letting out a low whistle, which caused the other students to look over at her. Kiba raised his eyebrows at her shortly before shaking his head and smiling.

Naruto chuckled, "Gotcha! That's my sexy jutsu!"

Unfortunately though, Iruka did not find that little stunt as amusing at Naruto did. The chunin-instructor proceeded to yell at the boy for several minutes about how he should not use degrading jutsu such as that. While listening to the lecture Amaya closed her eyes and leaned back against the desk behind her again. Part of her wondered when he would learn and grow up a little for once, of course then he really wouldn't be the Naruto she knew.

Once Iruka-sensei finished his review with the rest of the students, class was dismissed for the day. All the students were reminded once more to prepare for the exam the next day as they rushed out the door in their pursuit of returning home to their families.

Picking up the rear of the mass of students, Amaya stole a glance behind her. Seeing that Naruto was told to stay after class for the mischief he caused earlier that day. Shaking her head slightly, the girl walked down the hallway and exited the building. The warm sunlight caused her to squint briefly as her teal eyes adjusted to the sudden change. She could hear the cries of the younger students as they were let out of class as well. Among those gleeful screams another voice reached her, making her turn to her right and smile.

"Onee-chan!"

Amaya waved as her little sister ran up towards her, wrapping her arms around Amaya's waist. Following right behind the girl, Kiba waved as Akamaru yipped. Soon her little sister's grip loosened as she took a small step backward, still smiling up at her older sister. At the tender age of eight, Kaori was five years Amaya's junior. Her pale face was framed with locks of lavender hair that reached a couple inches past her shoulder blades, practically shinning in the sunlight. Her large, white eyes lit up with delight as Akamaru approached her while yipping happily. Oddly enough, Kaori inherited the Byakugan. Amaya had heard of legends of how the dojutsu managed to surface periodically within the Mizuno clan, though it still seemed surreal to see it with her own eyes.

While Kaori busied herself with petting Akamaru, Kiba glanced over at her and smiled.

"Excited fer the exam tomorrow?"

Amaya nodded in response, "You bet I am." Looking down, she chuckled while watching Akamaru lick Kaori's hand, who watched the small ninken with fascination. Her teal eyes then rested once more on Kiba, who also smiled at the young girl. "Hopefully you pass," she smirked, "Don't wanna leave you behind."

"Hey now," Kiba said while crossing his arms. "Don't be tellin' lies." He gestured towards Kaori, "Can't make me look bad in front of the kid."

"Excuse me? I'm the one that's supposed ta look good. She is _my_ sister." Amaya retorted while mimicking Kiba's present stance, a glint of amusement in her eyes.

Kiba chuckled and shook his head as Akamaru walked over towards him. "Sure, just make sure _you _pass tomorrow. What do you think your girlfriend would say if you failed?"

Amaya widened her eyes, "You know I was kidding!" She disputed as she shuddered slightly, "Like I would ever." The girl cringed again.

"Sure you wouldn't," Kiba replied as Akamaru yipped at his feet.

Kaori then looked up and walked over to her sister. "Onee-chan, do you have time to help me train today?"

The elder Mizuno ruffled her sister's hair, "Of course." She smiled warmly at her as the young girl grabbed her hand. "Well we should head on home."

"Yeah…" Kiba replied before patting the top of Kaori's head. He looked up at Amaya, "See ya tomorrow."

Amaya smiled back, "Yeah, see ya."

* * *

Once they reached their home, Kaori quickly ran inside.

"Oba-san! We're home!" she called out while taking off her shoes and dropping them at the entrance.

Following her sister, Amaya also removed her sandals and walked towards the small kitchen, where their aunt Suzuki was busy preparing dinner and from what Amaya could smell it seemed to be the beginnings of ramen, Kaori's favorite food. The kunoichi turned to face them, her deep blue eyes shining.

"Hello, how was everyone's day?" she asked while Kaori sat down at the nearby table.

"Good," Kaori replied with a smile. "We worked on how to use cloaks today."

"Oh really?" she asked as she started to begin a pot of green tea for the three of them. Once she began to heat the water, she removed a silver clip from her hair, releasing her flowing purple waves from the clip and allowing them to softly frame her round face.

Kaori nodded, "Yeah, you gotta remember what way the cloak goes or it won't work." She said before smiling and chuckling to herself.

Amaya tilted her head to the side and smiled. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Kaori shook her head, still smiling as she looked up at her sister. "It's just that this kid in my class can't figure it out." She chuckled again. "Everyone can see him."

Amaya smiled back at her sister, fondly remembering some similar incidents occurring within her class. "Dare I ask who it is?"

Suzuki placed two cups of steaming tea before both girls before sitting down, her own cup of tea sitting before her. "Well whoever it is, I am sure he is trying very hard." She sipped the hot liquid, "Just give him time, I am certain that he will figure it out eventually."

"Yes Oba-san, I know," Kaori replied with a small nod. "I heard that he has a jonin sensei that helps him after class. He always talks about how he's going to be Hokage someday."

Amaya blew on her tea before taking a sip. "Oh really? Wonder how his parents can afford that… must come from a noble clan or somethin'," she reasoned.

Kaori shook her head, "He's the Hokage's grandson, Konohamaru."

"Huh, that makes sense." Amaya replied. She shrugged before nudging her sister's arm. "Still want that help?"

Large white eyes looked up eagerly as Kaori nodded, "Uh-huh!" she replied before sliding off her chair. "Lemme get my cloaks!"

* * *

Sitting on their back porch, Amaya's teal eyes gazed up at the stars, grateful to see that the moon had finally decided to emerge tonight. She knew without a doubt that she would need the sleep tonight. There was no way she would allow her brother to best her when she had so much to prove…

The door behind her slid open, "Not hungry?"

Looking back briefly, Amaya shook her head before returning her gaze to the stars, still seeing Suzuki sit down beside her from the corner of her eye. The medical ninja placed a warm hand on her shoulder, hands that probably saved the lives of so many ninja. Her services were normally in high demand with the higher-rank missions the ninja had to undergo and very few were available due to the hard training, only certain ninja had what it took to become part of the medical-corp. This was one of the few times she was home for more than two days.

"You need to eat something Mei-chan. You have a big test tomorrow remember?"

Amaya shrugged, "I'm fine…"

"Alright then," Suzuki said in response, not making any indication of planning to return inside. Her gaze turned towards the stars as silence loomed between the two of them.

Suzuki was not blind, she knew her niece all too well. She was once again pondering the strict regulations of her clan, the same regulations that forced her at the tender age of eight to flee her home in the dead of night, clutching her sister's hand as if life depended on that very grip.

That night was forever ingrained upon Suzuki's memory. How Amaya feverishly pounded upon her door, gasping for air. The way her whole body seemed to shake and tremble after she rushed into her arms, clutching onto her as tight as she possibly could, as if she were afraid of what would happen if she let go. She could still recall the tears welling in her eyes and threatening to spill over down her cheeks, but she knew Amaya was preventing them from escaping for Kaori's sake. She did not want to frighten the child more than she already was that night. After all, that was just the way Amaya was, always protecting her younger sister from the cruelties of life. The medical ninja believed if it were not for her sister, Amaya might still be residing within the Mizuno compound.

How often did Suzuki wish she realized what was happening sooner! Perhaps she could have done something to help those poor children and spare them from what they were forced to endure. To think grown men would treat a little girl in such a manner for something she was unable to control! It still angered the kunoichi to think of it. Yet it also made her question the actions of her older sister, Kiyomi. She was their mother, was it possible she was also blind to what was occurring? Suzuki would hate to think that she knew but chose to do nothing, that was not who her sister was. Kiyomi would do anything for her family… for her village.

Upon hearing a yawn, Suzuki turned to face Amaya, who was rubbing at her closed eyes. The purple-haired kunoichi smiled as she rubbed her niece's back as she gently urged her to stand up before sleep consumed her.

"Come on, let's get you to bed."

Amaya nodded, rubbing at her eyes again. "Mhm, okay…" she leaned forward slightly before starting to stand up, stifling another yawn as she turned towards the door behind her. Sliding the door open, she turned to face Suzuki and offered her a small smile. "G'nite."

"Good night, Amaya. I know you will do well on your exam tomorrow."

"Thanks Oba-chan, I hope so."


	2. Graduation

Rubbing the remaining traces of sleep from her eyes, Amaya sat up and tossed her sheets aside. She swung her legs towards the side of her bed before planting her bare feet on the hardwood floor beneath her. With another yawn, she stretched her arms up above her head and padded her way towards her dresser. Her hands rummaged through the drawers and pulled out her standard shinobi outfit: mesh armor shirt and a pair of mesh shorts, a pair of blue shorts that reached just above her knees, a short-sleeved crew neck black tee shirt, and a sleeveless zip-up royal-purple shirt.

Tossing her bedclothes onto the floor, Amaya started to tug on the items she pulled from the drawers, the motion embedded in her mind so much so that she did not have to give much thought as she dressed for the upcoming day. Zipping up her shirt, Amaya walked over to the small table where her weapon pouches sat alongside a dagger given to her by Suzuki on her tenth birthday. She strapped the dagger onto her right calf as per her morning routine. Even though there was no real need to have it with her at school, Amaya always carried it with her. It had gotten her many envious looks from the boys in her class after she got it. Unfortunately, Iruka-sensei explicitly told her to never unsheathe it during class or she would face extreme consequences, which barred her from really getting a chance to show it off. However, that would soon change… at least she hoped so.

After opening her bedroom door, Amaya walked into the kitchen only to find the small room before her empty. She shook her head, of course no one else was up, today Suzuki Oba-chan had the day off and Kaori's classes were cancelled for the day due to the graduation exam. Quietly, as to let everyone else sleep, she grabbed an apple before slipping her shoes on and dashing out the front door.

Due to it being rather early still, the streets seemed emptier than normal as Amaya walked through the village, munching on the apple in her hand. Though she had reason to be up so early, there was one place she had to visit before taking the exam.

The cemetery…

With teal eyes scanning the numerous headstones on the ground, Amaya soon found the one she came to visit. In the fifth row, sixth headstone from the left was the final resting place of Haru Tansho.

Despite not being related by blood, Haru and Amaya were rather close during his lifetime. He would often help her with her academy studies like she helped Kaori with her's. Auctally he was the reason Amaya decided to become a kunoichi. She wanted to be strong and understanding as he was, able to protect those dear to her. Haru and Suzuki were even engaged to be married some time ago. Unfortunately, within two weeks of Amaya's tenth birthday he was killed protecting the only heir of some vast fortune as he journeyed from the Land of Fire towards the Land of Hot Water on a business trip. Before reaching the Land of Hot Water, they were ambushed by ronin seeking to kidnap him for ransom money. Sadly that was all Amaya knew, no one would tell her anything more…

Amaya touched the handle of the dagger strapped to her leg; it was the one thing of Haru's that she had. Her teal eyes shut as her other hand rested on the headstone. She would have to bring him some flowers after the exam… the others were long gone by now.

Her eyes suddenly snapped open as she glanced behind her. "Who's there?" she questioned, annoyed that someone dared to intrude upon her now, the one time she would much rather be alone.

"No need to worry my child, I bring you no harm."

Recognizing the voice, Amaya allowed herself to relax as she stood up. "Good morning Lord Third."

Hiruzen walked forward until he was standing beside the young girl, her eyes still locked upon the headstone before her. "Yes, it is a fine morning isn't it?" he asked, blowing out a small puff of smoke. "Today is the graduation test is it?"

"Yeah," Amaya replied. "Thank you for allowing my aunt to have the day off. It means a lot."

The Hokage smiled, "No need to thank me. Suzuki has been working very hard as of late and she deserved a rest."

Amaya nodded before pivoting on her heel to face the entrance again. "Excuse me, but I should get going."

"Ah, yes," Hiruzen turned his head so he was facing her. "Good luck today. I am sure you will make us all proud."

"Thank you," Amaya replied, "I hope that I do…"

* * *

Sliding open the door of her classroom, Amaya looked around at all the other students hoping to graduate today. Sure enough, her teal eyes spotted her younger brother Toshi, who was sitting on the far side of the classroom beside the windows. His dirt brown eyes landed upon her and narrowed as he closely watched her. Amaya then responded with a quick glare of her own before turning her attention back to the bustling room before her, trying to ignore her younger brother as she walked down the stairs in search of her friends.

"Amaya! Over here!"

Looking over to her right, Amaya's face broke out into a large grin as she strode down towards where Kiba was sitting. Behind him sat Hinata and Shikamaru. The Nara boy looked tired and unamused at having to be up before high noon once again while Hinata seemed alert but still wary of the coming events. She had reason to be, after all this was a big day for many of them. Amaya smiled and waved at the two shinobi-hopefuls before sitting in the open seat beside Kiba.

"This is so troublesome…" Shikamaru muttered, his head lying down on his desk.

Sighing, Amaya shook her head and leaned back in her chair while looking over at Kiba, who had a confident smirk on his face.

"Look who's so sure of himself," Amaya joked.

Kiba rolled his eyes, "Look who's talkin'."

"You're just jealous."

"Of what?"

Amaya smiled, "How awesome I am, duh."

"Right," Kiba shook his head, "Who beat who when we sparred last week?"

"Hey! That was one time!" Amaya retorted, crossing her arms. "It was an off day mister!"

"Still beat you."

Akamaru yipped in agreement.

Sitting up straight in her chair, Amaya was about to exclaim something about how it was _her_ that saved _him_ from his mother's wrath not-too long ago when the door at the front of the classroom slid open. All conversations soon halted and the other students quickly sat in their seats as Iruka walked towards the center of the room, his eyes closely watching all the ninja-hopefuls. He waited at his podium for the few students who were still talking to halt their conversations. Once total silence encased the room, he cleared his throat as his eyes scanned the several students once more.

"We will now start the final exam, once your name is called go to the testing room," Iruka glanced around again, making sure the students heard and understood him before continuing. "The final test will be on… the clone jutsu."

Quickly forgetting their earlier squabble, Kiba turned to face Amaya and grinned. "I got this in the bag."

Amaya rolled her eyes and shook her head, "You better." She smiled before glancing back at Naruto. Based on what she could see the kid seemed exasperated. His blue eyes soon looked up and landed on Amaya, who waved back with a grin. In response, Naruto managed a small grin in return before he took a very Shikamaru-like position by burying his head into his arms as he sighed.

"Kiba Inuzuka!" a shrill voice called out, causing Amaya to cringe slightly.

She looked up at Kiba as he started to stand up. A grin was plastered on his face, making Amaya smile as well.

"Good luck."

Kiba turned back and smiled. "Thanks."

After Kiba exited the classroom, Amaya rested her chin in the palms of her hands. Her teal eyes starred forward blankly at the wall before her as she tried to calm her racing nerves. There was no reason for her to worry, she always managed to perform the clone jutsu effortlessly, she even had mastered the water clone jutsu a couple months ago so the technique was not foreign to her. What worried her more was what her father or brother would try to do if they learned that she passed the test. Amaya shook her head, now was not the time to be thinking about that. She has defied those regulations for almost five years now, she could not turn back this far in, that would just seem weak and cowardly.

"Amaya Mizuno."

Amaya's head shot up and the teacher motioned for her to follow her. She heard her friends encourage her as she left, easily making out Choji's words of support through the crunching of his potato chips being stuffed into his mouth. The teacher soon directed her to a nearby room and opened the door for her. Beyond the threshold revealed a rather small room. One table sat at the opposite end of the area. Several headbands covered the wooden surface with Iruka and Mizuki, another instructor, sitting behind it. Both were watching her as she walked towards the center of the room.

Iruka looked up at her, "You may start whenever you are ready."

Nodding, Amaya brought her hands together and made the needed hand signs for the jutsu.

'_Clone Jutsu!'_

Once she opened her eyes and looked around her, Amaya saw four perfect replications standing beside her. Her teal eyes quickly made her way back to Iruka-sensei, waiting to hear his conclusion.

Iruka smiled at her and grabbed a headband. "Congratulations Amaya, you passed."

Teal eyes lit up as Amaya ran to grab her headband. She quickly tied it around her head and jumped up and down.

"Yes! I'm a ninja!" she cheered, causing Iruka to shake his head and chuckle at her. The new kunoichi jumped up in the air once more before bounding out the door.

"Yahoo!"

* * *

All the newly-graduated ninja were gathered outside alongside their parents, who congratulated their sons or daughters on his or her most recent accomplishment. Amaya forced her way through the cluster of bodies, searching for Kiba as well as her own family while trying to avoid a few certain people along the way.

Once she slid past an over-weight man with a serious case of body-odor, her teal eyes caught sight of a mass of purple curls near a splash of spiky brown hair. Suddenly, she felt small arms being wrapped around her.

"Congratulations Onee-chan!" Kaori said.

Amaya returned the hug with a smile. "Thanks," she replied while ruffling Kaori's hair as she loosened her grip on her.

Suzuki walked over along with Kiba and his mother. Her blue eyes were shining with pride in her niece as her lips curved up into a smile. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks Oba-san," Amaya replied as her eyes quickly scanned the surrounding area. She frowned after not seeing another head of purple hair. She looked at Suzuki, "Where's Oba-chan?" she questioned.

"She sadly had to leave just recently on a mission; she said she is sorry to have missed it."

Kiba shook his head, "Yeah, the food maybe…"

His mother, Tsume, abruptly smacked him on the back of his head. She sighed while Kaori giggled with child-like glee as Kiba rubbed the back of his hooded head. Amaya tried to fight off chuckles of her own but failed quickly, earning a scowl from Kiba. The kunoichi looked up and stuck her tongue out at him, still laughing quietly. Tsume shook her head at her son but a faint smile pulled at the corners of her lips.

Suzuki looked over at Tsume. "You two should join us tonight. We'll celebrate their graduations together."

Kaori's face lit up at the idea, wanting to seize at any chance to play with Akamaru. "Can they? Please?" she begged, lightly bouncing on her feet.

Tsume chuckled and patted Kaori's head. "Sure kid, we can drop by."

While smiling, Amaya looked through the crowd, searching for another possible invite for their gathering. She was certain he would not miss free food for anything. Her teal eyes soon landed on the one her gaze was searching for and her heart suddenly dropped. There he was on the swing, staring despondently at the ground below him. No shiny forehead protector tied around his head. Perhaps she should try to console Naruto, failing the test three times was probably weighing down on him. Everyone knew how much he wanted to be a ninja… to be the Hokage.

One foot moved forward towards the blonde, but soon her movements were halted at the words of two mothers conversing with one another.

"There, you see him?" one questioned, looking straight at Naruto.

The other woman followed suit. "It's that boy. I heard he's the only one that failed."

"Well it serves him right."

"Just imagine what would happen if he became a ninja. I mean he's the boy who-"

The first one cut her off. "Shh, we're not allowed to talk about that!" she sneered.

Glancing away from the two women, Amaya's eyes were filled with curiosity at their conversation. She wondered what exactly it was they were talking about, Naruto was the boy who what? She then shifted her gaze back towards Naruto, only to find the swing he sat on barren.

"Amaya!" Suzuki called, "It's time to go home!"

She turned back to face her aunt, forcing a grin onto her face as she nodded. "I'll be right there!" she responded before walking towards them, stealing one last glance at the empty swing before shaking her head.

* * *

"Kaori, please don't feed Akamaru at the table."

White eyes shot up as Kaori's hand quickly found its way back to the table. "Yes Obaa-san," she replied before placing a piece of meat onto her plate.

Tsume smiled as Akamaru walked out of the dining room, realizing that he was no longer going to receive any more handouts. Leaning forward, Amaya's chopsticks soon collided with Kiba's as they both went for the final piece of beef. Her teal eyes narrowed as she glanced over at him. He then responded with a small glare of his own. The two remained like that for a few moments, causing the others at the dinner table to watch them closely. Both jonin watching to see if they would try to fight for it, as they have in the past. With a swift movement, Amaya managed to knock away Kiba's chopsticks and grab the piece of beef. She stuffed it into her mouth and chuckled.

"Too slow," she said around the food in her mouth.

Suzuki sighed, "Amaya, please don't talk with food in your mouth."

Finishing the beef, Amaya slightly hung her head, attempting to look sheepish, "Sorry, Obaa-san." Looking up, Amaya quickly stuck her tongue out at Kiba before chuckling again.

Kiba dropped his chopsticks onto his plate. "Lucky break, that's it."

"Sure it was," Amaya replied as she followed the motion of dropping her chopsticks. "Just keep telling yourself that."

With a smile, Suzuki stood up and started to gather the plates. Kaori soon followed suit, though only after sneaking another piece of meat to Akamaru, who was all too happy to get another handout. The small ninken yipped and leapt up into Kiba's lap. Amaya smiled at the dog and reached over to pet him, the small squabble between her and Kiba already forgotten about.

She looked over at Tsume, "Want some tea?"

"Naw, I'm good," she responded, leaning back in her chair.

A loud knock was heard throughout the building. Standing up, Amaya walked over to answer, wondering who would be here at this time of the day. She opened the door to be met with a ninja. The new kunoichi assumed he was at least a chunin. Ninja normally didn't come by their house… unless something urgent came up.

Amaya smiled, "Hello, did you need Suzuki?"

"Yes," the ninja said with a nod. "We require her assistance right now."

"Okay, just give me a sec," Amaya responded sweetly before turning her head around. "Suzuki! Someone's here ta see you!" She turned back around and smiled again, "She'll be right here."

Striding out of the kitchen, Suzuki soon made her way to the ninja. "What's the problem?"

The ninja glanced at Amaya, "The Hokage has required all jonin and chunin to mobilize. An important scroll has been stolen."

"I understand," Suzuki said with a nod before turning back towards the dining room. "Tsume!"

"Yeah?" she questioned after appearing from the dining room. "What is it?"

"We have to go, Hokage's orders," she instructed. "We could use that nose of yours."

Tsume nodded as she walked towards the door. She let out a high-pitched whistle and soon her ninken, Kuromaru, appeared from the living room and followed his partner outside. As the two ninja started for their destination, Suzuki glanced back at Amaya and offered her a smile.

"We'll be back soon, help your sister clean up okay?"

Amaya nodded, "Alright," she responded, "Be careful, okay?"

Suzuki nodded, "Of course."

Once Suzuki vanished from her line of sight, Amaya shut the door quietly before padding her way towards the kitchen. Upon entering the room, both Kiba and Kaori glanced up at her.

Kaori walked forward with curious eyes. "What's going on? Why did Obaa-san have to leave with Tsume-san?"

"They were called to help retrieve a stolen scroll," Amaya replied while ruffling her sister's hair. "They'll be back soon."

"Promise?" she questioned.

Amaya nodded, "I promise." Her teal eyes looked up at Kiba, "Well guess we better get started on these dishes."

* * *

… _Two Days Later; Academy…_

Looking around the classroom, Amaya felt a small smile tug on the corners of her lips as her teal eyes landed on a familiar blond head. She could not believe her eyes; Naruto had auctally graduated this time. While the kunoichi wondered how he managed to pull it off, she did not give the idea much thought. All that mattered was he had graduated.

Diverting her attention elsewhere, her gaze soon landed upon Hinata. She was sitting by herself towards the back of the room, glancing at Naruto with a smile.

"Hey Hinata," Amaya said while sliding into the seat next to her.

Hinata turned towards her and offered a smile. "Hello."

Amaya opened her mouth to ask Hinata if she had seen Kiba, but was cut off by two girls storming into the classroom. The black-haired girl inwardly groaned, not them too…

"I'm first!" both girls cried before leaning forward and panting, as if they ran the whole way here.

Ino Yamanaka, a girl with extremely long blond hair and blue eyes who also had an extreme obsession with dieting, looked over at the girl beside her, Sakura.

"I won again, Sakura!"

"Give it up!" Sakura retorted. "I had to look back to see you, my toe was at _least_ a tenth of an inch ahead!"

Shaking her head, Amaya turned to face the front of the room. She forced herself not to yell some smart-ass remark at them; it wasn't worth her time any more. There were more important things to worry about, like training. Unfortunately, sometimes it seemed like she was the only girl who honestly wanted to train, like now. Despite her attempts to block out the noise, Amaya could still make out the normal bickering amongst the girls about who got to sit next to Sasuke, all of them saying that they got here first so they should sit next to him. It was nauseating to endure through every day. Sasuke was nothing special; in fact, he was kind of a jerk.

"Annoyin' aren't they?"

Amaya looked to her right and nodded, glad that Kiba had finally decided to show up. "Yeah, extremely." She shook her head. "Only good thing is we don't have as much competition with them fighting over Sasuke."

Kiba nodded, "Yeah, that's true." He glanced over at the mass of girls, who were suddenly quite… it was eerie. "Whadda think is goin' on?"

Standing up, Amaya soon leapt up onto the desk in front of her, wanting to get a good look at what was happening. What she saw made her eyes widen in horror and disgust…

Naruto had _kissed_ Sasuke!

She leapt down from the top of the table and felt a shiver run down her spine as she sat down. Kiba looked at her with confusion.

"So… what happened?"

Amaya shook her head, "You seriously don't wanna know. You'd lose your breakfast."

A scream soon attacked her eardrums, causing everyone to turn and look at all the girls. They had decided it was a good idea to beat up on Naruto, whining about he stole something as precious as Sasuke's first kiss. Amaya shook her head as she stood up again. Someone might as well help the poor thing.

She stuffed her hands into her pockets, "I'll be right back."

Calmly, she started to make her way towards the mass of girls as a smirk slowly appeared on her face. She pushed a few girls to the side with ease until she was standing in front of Naruto, hands still stuffed in her pockets as she gazed upon the girls. They all started to protest at her intrusion, yelling at her to get out of their way and the kid deserved what he was getting.

"Move!" one girl yelled, pushing her way to the front of the mass until her brown eyes met with Amaya's teal. "Get out of my way you dog!"

Amaya shook her head and sighed, for some reason they honestly thought that such names wounded her. Instead, they gave her a sense of pride, showing everyone that she was nothing like these girls who cared nothing for their abilities and would rather waste away their days with trying to improve upon their appearance rather than their jutsu. None of them would last long in the ninja world if they kept those same priorities.

She cracked her knuckles, watching the girls in front of her closely for any movement. "I've been itching for a fight all day. So, who wants to fight me first?" Her gaze locked with the girl standing before her. "You volunteering?"

"What if I am?" she sneered.

Amaya shrugged, "Doesn't really matter to me." Pulling her hand back slightly, she curled her fingers inward to form a fist. Swiftly, she pulled her hand forward and hit the girl in front of her right in her gut. She stumbled backward and coughed before looking up at Amaya.

"Freak," she said while standing up straight. "You're not worth my time." She looked at Naruto and immediately lifted her chin before walking away.

Amaya chuckled and narrowed her eyes at the remaining girls, "Anyone else?"

The rest of them shook their heads and walked away, muttering various insults. Others echoed the first girl, calling her a freak and a nuisance to the rest of them as they found seats in the classroom.

Once she was positive no one else was going to try to fight her, Amaya turned to smile at Naruto. She stretched a hand towards him, offering to help him up.

"You okay?"

Naruto nodded as he took her hand and stood up. "Yeah," he replied with a nod.

"Good," she replied with a smile. Ruffling the blonde's hair, she pivoted on her heel and offered a wave. "See ya around!" She called before making her way back to Kiba/

As she walked back to her seat, Amaya could feel several pairs of eyes watching her. Some still whispered crude comments as she sat back down. Fortunately, Iruka-sensei entered the classroom, halting any conversation. Everybody was eager to hear what he was going to tell them.

Iruka glanced around the room at all the graduates before clearing his throat. "As of today you are all ninjas, to get here you faced difficult trials and hardships, but that's nothing. What comes next will be far more difficult. Now you are only genin, first-level ninjas. All of the genin will be grouped into three-man squads. Each squad will be led by a jonin, an elite ninja."

Smiling, Amaya glanced over at Kiba, who smiled back at her. Both of them were hoping fiercely that they would be placed on the same squad. Her gaze then shifted towards a mass of black hair that matched her own. As long as she was not paired with _him_, the kunoichi did not want to have to deal with her younger brother all of the time. Shaking her head, she glanced at Hinata. The Hyuga was sneaking glances of her own at Naruto. Amaya knew who she wanted to be in a squad with.

"Squad 7: Naruto Uzumaki… Sakura Haruno…"

Amaya smiled as she heard Naruto cheer and Sakura groan, hanging her head.

"And Sasuke Uchiha."

Now it was Sakura's turn to cheer while Naruto hung his head. Amaya honestly felt sorry for him… and Hinata. She wasn't going to be in a squad with Naruto now.

"Squad 8: Hinata Hyuga…"

Hinata looked forward, "Yes sir."

"Kiba Inuzuka…"

Kiba chuckled while looking up. Amaya was bouncing up and down in her seat, hoping that her name would be called next. This would be the greatest squ-

"Shino Aburame."

She suddenly froze, staring blankly at the front of the room. This had to be a mistake, how could she not be on a squad with Kiba?

"Squad 9: Amaya Mizuno…"

She looked up hopefully. As long as she got to be with Choji she would manage, he was a cool guy after all. Anyone but _him_ would be fine. Just not _him_.

"Ringo Fujimaki and…"


	3. Team

"Squad Nine: Amaya Mizuno… Ringo Fujimaki… Toshi Mizuno…"

Amaya's eyes were wide with horror. She was stuck with Toshi, the one person that she despised far more than Sasuke Uchiha. Ignoring what was going on around her, the kunoichi's mind seemed to halt all functions, closing in on the truth that was laid out before her. What could she have done to deserve this? Sure Ringo was bad enough, always following her around like a puppy, but she could handle him. Fury boiled up inside her before she bolted out of her seat and slammed her palms against her desk, causing everyone in the room to stare at her.

"Iruka-sensei!" she bellowed. "There must be some mistake! Why am I in a squad with Toshi?!"

The chunin sighed and shook his head. "That is how we decided to set up the squads. Your abilities and weaknesses will compensate for one another." He crossed his arms after seeing Amaya start to protest. "And the assignments will not be changed."

With a groan, Amaya sat back down in her seat.

Iruka shook his head, "As I was saying… After lunch you'll meet your new jonin teachers. Until then, class dismissed."

As the young ninja began to quickly file out of the classroom, Amaya sighed and hung her head. From the corner of her eye, she noticed the newly assigned teams were gravitating towards one another. It seemed natural after all to want to form some sort of a relationship with your teammates. After all, you would be spending a bunch of time with those people in the future.

However, Amaya was uninterested with spending any unnecessary time with either of her 'teammates.'

Within mere seconds, the kunoichi bounded out of the classroom door. Her sandal-clad feet pounding against the ground beneath her far quicker than Ringo could hope to match. Taking a deep breath of the early afternoon air, she glanced around the expanse before her. Many of the ninja were slowly walking away from the building, lunches in hand. Pivoting on her heal, Amaya turned sharply to her left and headed towards the practice room. She was certain that Kiba would have dragged his team there.

Walking into the large room, Amaya smiled upon seeing Kiba and his team in the far back corner of the space. Kiba was sprawled out on the ground with Akamaru lying down beside his head. Hinata and Shino were both sitting against the wall as they ate their lunch.

"Hey guys!" she exclaimed while walking towards their gathering.

Hinata looked up and smiled. "Hello Amaya-chan."

Amaya gave her a wave before sitting down. "Hey."

Looking down, the kunoichi smiled and nudged Kiba with her foot and unwrapped her boxed lunch. The Inuzuka stirred and groaned before opening his eyes. A scowl was present on his face as he looked to his right.

Amaya chuckled and held out a rice ball, "Morning, you hungry?" she asked, noticing he didn't have a lunch. The moron probably forgot it again.

He quickly sat up and turned to face her, his scowl replaced with a grin as he reached for the rice ball. "Thanks."

"Amaya, shouldn't you be with your team instead of us?" questioned Shino. He pushed his glasses up his nose, not once looking in the direction of the water kunoichi. "One must develop bonds with their comrades correct?"

Wrinkling up her nose in disgust, Amaya narrowed her eyes slightly. "Trust me, I'm-"

"Amaya-san! There you are!"

Both Amaya and Kiba whipped their heads towards the source of the new voice. Inwardly, Amaya groaned as she turned to face the wall. Why did he follow her?

Smiling, Ringo walked over and sat beside Amaya. "I lost you back there." He chuckled while grabbing a rice ball, "Good thing I caught up huh?"

"Yeah, it sure is," Amaya responded before taking another bite of her food.

The five of them sat in an awkward silence for the remainder of lunch, each paying excessive attention to the food before them rather than the fellow shinobi situated around the corner of the practice room. Both Hinata and Kiba were aware of how much Amaya detested the blue-eyed ninja seated beside her though neither one of them was sure as to the reasoning behind her feelings, both were too afraid to try asking.

Soon, lunch ended and each ninja walked back towards the classroom where they would all be meeting their instructors. Despite her constant attempts of shaking him off, Ringo remained right by her side. Though she could somewhat understand why he chose to cling to Amaya rather than Toshi. The upcoming clan head was almost as smug and cocky as Sasuke Uchiha… almost. Still, that did not prevent the water kunoichi from avoiding him as much as possible.

Entering the classroom, Amaya's teal eyes quickly darted to the front of the room where nine unfamiliar faces stood alongside Iruka. One of those ninja was going to be her new instructor.

Her gaze glanced at each of the ninja in turn; some already had a team situation around them and started to make their way out of the crowded front of the classroom. Soon her teal eyes found Toshi standing beside one of the male instructors who wore the standard shinobi attire. From where she was standing she could tell he had short, deep red hair along with a pair of wide-set brown eyes. It appeared he had several years of experience in the field from the lone scar that ran down his left cheek as well as the muscle definition that could be made out from underneath his blue long-sleeved shirt.

The jonin's gaze soon landed on her, sending a chill running up her spine. It was such a hard, cold stare that Amaya was taken aback. Quickly shaking her head, Amaya followed Ringo as he strode towards their instructor.

His brown eyes quickly glanced at the three of them. He turned towards the door. "Follow me."

* * *

Walking away from the academy, their instructor motioned for the three of them to sit underneath a tree. The three shinobi complied with his request, each sitting on the ground with his or her backs facing the trunk. Both Toshi and Ringo sat within a meter of one another while Amaya made it apparent that she planned to stay as far from the two of them as possible, sitting almost three meters away. Three meters was the furthest she could sit from the two of them and still take advantage of the shade the nearby tree provided.

Still standing, the instructor quickly glanced at the three genin before closing his eyes. "Let's start by introducing ourselves. Since we're going to be a team we will need to become familiar with one another." His brown eyes landed on Amaya, "You there on the end."

When no one else spoke, Amaya lifted her head up and pointed to herself. "Me?"

The instructor nodded impatiently.

"Um…" she glanced to her side before looking back at the instructor. "What do you want me to say?"

The Jonin sighed while shaking his head, annoyed that the girl was making this task more difficult than it had to be. "Your name, likes, dislikes, aspirations…"

Amaya nodded, "Okay, my name is Amaya Mizuno. I like yakitori and swords but I dislike new moons." She paused for a moment, "And my dream is to become a captain of a team in the Black Ops."

"Alright," the instructor said with a nod before looking towards Ringo. "What about you?"

"I'm Ringo Fujimaki," the genin said with a grin. "I like reading various novels but dislike things that are bitter. I don't really have a dream for the future other than becoming strong so I can protect people."

The instructor nodded again and shifted his gaze towards Toshi. The heir responded without having to be prompted by the Jonin.

"My name is Toshi Mizuno. I don't particularly like or dislike anything." As he said that his brown eyes quickly darted towards Amaya, his hard gaze lingered for a moment before he turned back to the instructor. "And my dream for the future is to someday assume my father's role in our clan."

Amaya brought her knees up to her chest and looked at the instructor. "So what about you? Aren't you gonna introduce yourself?"

The instructor closed his eyes while crossing his arms over his chest. "My name is Matsu Tanaka, though you will address me as Matsu-sensei."

"That's it?"

Matsu looked up at her, "There is nothing else that is of concern to you."

"When's our first mission Matsu-sensei?" Ringo asked happily.

"Before we worry about such things, first I want the three of you to partake in an exercise."

Amaya tilted her head to the side. "What kind of exercise?"

"A survival test."

"We've already done that stuff before," Amaya responded. "That's how we got here remember?"

Matsu shook his head and sighed. "This will be different from what you've undergone in the Academy. This test will determine if you can officially become ninja. If you are incapable of meeting the standards of shinobi then you'll be dropped from the program, permanently."

"Then what was that test we took before for anyway?!" Amaya boasted as she leaned forward, narrowing her gaze upon the Jonin.

"It was to decide who _could_ become ninja."

Amaya groaned as she sat back.

"Meet tomorrow at training ground twenty-nine, dawn. Make sure to bring your ninja gear."

* * *

… _Morning…_

Yawning, Amaya glanced around the training ground. Her teal gaze searched for her teammates while still secretly hoping no one was here so she could get some more shut-eye. It was too early for any reasonable human being to be out of bed.

As she kept walking forward, she soon met up with the three other members of her team. Sighing, she dragged her feet along the hard earth below her. While the weight of today's test was not lost upon her, the kunoichi-candidate was still irritated that she had to be up at _dawn_ to take this test, though she would not voice such ideas in front of her team, she did not needing them thinking that she was dead-weight. Such conditions were standard to the job and she could learn to deal with them.

Ringo smiled as the teal-eyed girl approached them. "Good morning, Amaya-san."

"Yeah… you too…" she mumbled with a roll of her eyes. Her gaze landed upon the jonin, "So what's the test?"

Closing his eyes, Matsu crossed his arms. "Today's exercise will be comparable to a treasure-hunt." His brown gaze briefly landed on each of his students. While each one of them was in a standing position, each stance had varying undertones that easily showed Matsu the core traits of their personalities. Toshi was looking directly at him, his arms crossed over the front of his chest. His straight posture effectively showed that the boy was highly confident in his abilities and believed himself to be far superior to both of his teammates.

Amaya's stance however, was outwardly far more casual and relaxed. Her hands were placed on her hips as she impatiently tapped her foot against the ground below her. While not obvious to the untrained eye, she was slightly slouched over. However, despite her stance, it was apparent that her muscles were tensed up in preparation of the upcoming test. Her teal eyes darted from looking at him to looking at her new teammates. She did not appear to be pleased to be there, which was perfectly fine with the instructor, he was in agreement with her father's belief that she should not be permitted to be a shinobi. Unfortunately, it was highly improbable that the Hokage would personally pull her from the program. So placing the girl on his team was perfectly acceptable with him. The Hokage was unaware of his distaste for the girl and he was determined to ensure that her being on his team would do nothing to further her life as a ninja.

Moving his gaze again, it soon rested upon the Fujimaki kid. His stance was an apparent medium in comparison to the Mizuno siblings. While standing straight, his muscles were far more relaxed than the other two genin, casual but the ninja looked ready to attack within moments if required. His hands were stuffed into his pockets as his gaze flickered between Matsu and the girl. The jonin knew that the Hokage had made sure that the kid was placed on a team along with Amaya, though no one was certain as to why he was so persistent upon the arrangement. However, no one made a move to argue, there must be some larger purpose behind the decision even if many could not see the reason.

Closing his eyes, the jonin resumed his explanation. "As you can see, around you there is a plethora of trees. Somewhere I have hidden a scroll. Your objective is to retrieve the item. Whoever can manage to do that will pass and those who can't will be sent back to the academy." He looked back up at the three genin, "Understood?"

The three genin looked at him and nodded in agreement. Each of them visibly tensed up their muscles, looking at the others warily.

"Alright, one more thing, you can use any tools or jutsu that you have. If you aren't ready to kill then you won't pass. Now, when I give the signal you may begin." He quickly looked at the three genin once more, allowing himself to smile slightly at the varying intensities of the determination within their eyes.

"Begin!"

* * *

Gasping for air, Amaya leaned against the trunk of a nearby tree. Her teal eyes quickly glanced around her to ensure that no one was nearby. The kunoichi felt as if she had scoured the entire forest and still had no idea as to where that scroll was. What if Toshi or Ringo already had it? She furiously shook her head. Those thoughts wouldn't help her now. She _will_ find that scroll and she _will_ become a ninja. Failure was not an option here… too much was at stake.

The sound of a twig snapping caused Amaya's body to stiffen. Her hand quickly reached for a kunai and threw it in the direction of the sound. The blade embedded itself within the trunk of another tree with a _thump_. Reaching for more kunai, the kunoichi watched closely for the possibility of an attack. Within moments, her teal eyes saw as Ringo walked into her field of vision, his hands held up to show he wasn't going to attack. However, that didn't deter Amaya from throwing another kunai at him.

Ringo easily managed to dodge the object. "I don't want to fight you." He took a step forward, causing Amaya to lift another kunai. "I'm here to help."

Amaya narrowed her gaze, "And I should believe you why?"

"I found the scroll."

"You have it?!" she hissed, taking a step closer towards him.

Ringo shook his head. "No, it's surrounded by a bunch of chunin. We can't get to it."

"_We_?" Amaya questioned, her eyes darting around again. "Who's _we_?"

Spotting movement in the corner of her eye, Amaya turned her head to face the source. Soon Toshi walked out from behind the brush and stood beside Ringo. Amaya tensed up more, lifting her kunai in warning. Perhaps this was a trick to lower her guard so they could get rid of some competition. Her eyes narrowed as she closely watched the two standing in front of her, ready for anything.

Noticing that no one else was about to break the silence, Ringo spoke up. "If any of us want that scroll then we need to work together. None of us can get close enough by ourselves."

Amaya snorted, "Like I'd work with either one of you."

"We don't have much choice here," Toshi interjected while crossing his arms. His gaze leveled with Amaya's, his brown eyes hard and cold. "Any small addition will help."

"Why on earth should I believe either one of you?" Amaya's gaze flickered in between Ringo and Toshi, accusation hidden in the teal pools. "How can I be sure you won't just toss me to the side?"

Toshi shook his head and sighed. "We all have the same goal, to become genin. If we don't' work together, no matter how much some of us might detest the idea…" he looked once more at Amaya, "then none of us will advance."

"But Matsu said only one of us could pass!" Amaya sneered.

"Not exactly," Ringo pointed out. "He said that whoever could retrieve the item will pass. He never gave a specific number. So if we retrieve the item as a team then, technically, we all should still pass."

Amaya crossed her arms. "And if you're wrong?"

"Worst case scenario: no one passes," Ringo said with a shrug before glancing at Amaya, his blue eyes silently pleading with her. "Will you help us?"

Her teal gaze drifted away from the two standing before her, contemplating the offer. If Ringo was telling the truth, it would be next to impossible for any of them to get close enough to the scroll alone. She could not risk going back to the Academy, she was already a year behind and couldn't afford any more delays. Moreover, she was not going to risk watching Toshi surpass her and become a genin before she did. It looked as if she didn't have another option.

"Fine, I'm in. What's the plan?"

* * *

Ringo wasn't lying.

Situated around what Amaya assumed was a chest holding the scroll, were two ninja. It was probable that they were chunin as they all wore Konoha's standard shinobi uniform. Closing her eyes, Amaya pressed her back against the cool tree trunk directly behind her. Quickly, her gaze darted towards where Ringo was situated. His blue gaze locked with her teal and he gave a small nod.

That was the signal.

Tightly gripping a kunai in either hand, Amaya sprung to her feet and jumped out from behind the tree. Her lips curved upwards into a large grin upon noticing that the guards had caught sight of her. She quickly threw the kunai in her hands. The projectiles were easily dodged as a single chunin advanced towards her, kunai held up in preparation to strike. Amaya's fingers soon wrapped around the handle of another kunai, she managed to lift the object just in time to block the enemy's blade.

Jumping back to avoid another strike, the kunoichi reached into her back pouch and pulled out a handful of needles. With a swift movement, she unleashed the slivers of metal upon her opponent. She smirked upon seeing that a few had struck their mark. That is what she loved so much about her senbon. They were almost undetectable due to their small size but still had the capabilities to be just as deadly as a kunai, with enough practice that is.

Looking ahead, her teal eyes registered that both chunin were advancing towards her, leaving the scroll unguarded. Amaya smirked before letting out a low whistle.

As planned, both Ringo and Toshi leapt out from where they were hidden and advanced towards the scroll. One of the chunin snapped his head around, making a move to advance back towards the scroll. Pivoting on his heel, the shinobi began to make his way towards Ringo and Toshi. Hearing the approaching footsteps as they assaulted the ground below, Toshi quickly turned around and delivered a strike to the offender's jaw, causing the chunin's head to jerk back.

Once the ninja regained his footing, he made a move to deliver an attack upon the genin…

"Enough!"

The thunderous roar bounced off every surrounding surface as all eyes darted towards its source. All movement ceased and a smile pulled at the corners of Amaya's mouth upon seeing Ringo's fingers firmly wrapped around the scroll.

Matsu strode forward, his gaze quickly scanning those that stood before him. Closing his eyes, the jonin crossed his arms over his chest.

"You all pass."

Teal eyes went wide, sparkling with joy. It was with a whoop that Amaya jumped into the air, dropping her weapons to the ground. Matsu and Toshi both shook their heads and proceeded to walk away, annoyed with her childish behavior. Staying behind, Ringo watched the kunoichi with a fond smile as she kept leaping up and down into the air, all the while screaming with delight.

"I'm a ninja!"


	4. Encounter

… _Six Months Later…_

Hands stuffed into her pockets, Amaya strode down the streets of Konoha, heading towards where Matsu-sensei had instructed everyone to meet. The kunoichi hoped that he was going to tell them that they got an _actual _mission this time. She was growing tired of all the kid missions they have been getting. Babysitting, weeding, picking up trash, running errands, and even searching for lost pets were among the tasks assigned to them over the past two months. It was ridiculous! She should be out there on a _real_ mission. She was more than ready for such an undertaking!

However, she would not dare voice such opinions to the Hokage… While the kunoichi was extremely annoyed with the assignments, she knew that there was reasoning behind receiving the missions that she did. Unfortunately, those reasons were apparently lost upon Naruto. From what she heard coupled with what the blonde had told her, he constantly questioned the Hokage's decisions and demanded that he be given C-rank missions more often. Amaya remembered that day she had smacked the back of his head, telling him to quit his complaining and that he had at least been on a C-rank mission before. That had finally shut him up.

Naruto was not the only one complaining about their assignments. Kiba had taken up to grumbling about the mundane tasks that he was told to do. Both he and Naruto were unable to understand why Amaya had decided against saying something to the Hokage in the manner that Naruto and Kiba had frequently done. They had assumed the kunoichi would have been just as, if not more, outraged at the lack of challenges presented to them than they were. After being asked several times, Amaya had decided against telling the two of them her reasoning for such behavior. She wasn't about to tell them that the Hokage was quite literally the only reason she was even a ninja. So she was not about to criticize him for the missions he gave her and her team.

Soon she approached the meeting spot. Looking ahead, Amaya noticed that once again she was the last one to arrive. In stark contrast to Ringo's laid-back expression as he leaned against the trunk of a tree, Matsu-sensei and Toshi looked upon her with the annoyed expression that the kunoichi had become accustomed to receiving over the past several weeks.

Toshi crossed his arms. "Nice to see you could join us."

Glaring at her brother, Amaya quickly rolled her eyes in disgust before redirecting her gaze towards Matsu-sensei. "So what's our mission today?"

"There isn't a mission today," Matsu replied.

"Then why did you gather us?" Toshi asked, seemingly annoyed.

Matsu held up a stack of papers briefly before handing them to Ringo, who instantly began passing them out. After receiving her copy, Amaya's teal eyes quickly scanned the paper before looking up at the jonin.

"Registration forms?" she questioned, placing a hand on her hip. "For what?"

Matsu crossed his arms, his gaze quickly landing on Amaya. "The Chunin Exam is coming up. You have fulfilled the requirements to take part, if you wish. The exam starts on the first of July. If you want to participate, sign these forms and report to the Academy, room 301." He turned around, "Until then you're all dismissed." Brining his hands together to form a sign, Matsu vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving the three genin standing there.

Folding up the piece of paper and stuffing it into her back pocket, Amaya turned to make her way towards the shopping district. Her lips curved into a grin, unable to wait until the day of the exam. She was finally given a chance to show just how strong she had become since she graduated the Academy. This chance would surely not be wasted.

Suddenly, the kunoichi heard the sound of tapping feet approach her. Inwardly she groaned, wondering what on earth this person wanted. Turning to face behind her, Amaya had to suppress her groan from going verbal. Bright blue eyes stared at her as Ringo smiled and waved, quickly falling into step beside Amaya. Mentally, she kept telling herself to be nice to the kid… he never did anything to her other than it seemed as if he was always watching her. At least it wasn't Toshi that was following her, that was a plus no matter how small.

Ringo smiled again, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Think you're going to take the exam?"

"Of course I am," Amaya replied with a nod while looking straight ahead. "Are you?"

"I haven't decided yet…" Ringo responded with a shrug. "Maybe…"

Looking towards him, Amaya forced herself to smile. "You should at least try," she said with a shrug. "Who knows, you might become a chunin."

"You're right," Ringo said, looking up to smile at Amaya. "Thanks."

"Yeah, anytime," the kunoichi replied before looking ahead of her once more. "See ya."

Ringo nodded, "Bye…"

Turning a corner, Amaya proceeded towards the shopping district of the village. Glancing into the window displays, her brow furrowed as if she was deep in thought. Kiba's birthday was coming up soon and she was determined to get him a great gift. The problem was she had no idea what to get the Inuzuka. His mother was absolutely no help… though the kunoichi didn't except her to be of any in the first place. It did not help that Amaya was horrible when it came to getting gifts for others. She did not know why but the task was extremely difficult. Whenever she attempted to search for something, she was unable to tell for certain if whoever was going to receive the gift would like it.

Walking into one of the shops, Amaya began to browse the assortment of men's jewelry they had. She sighed. Kiba wasn't exactly the type to wear jewelry… It wasn't like the guy really had any hobbies other than training and taking walks with Akamaru. Snapping her fingers, Amaya remembered that Akamaru's birthday was the same as Kiba's. She should make sure to get the ninken a gift as well. It would be so much easier to get a gift for the little guy. Despite being a ninja hound, Amaya knew very well that the pup had a fondness for chew toys. She was still unable to forget how the dog had chewed up a pair of her sandals one time she spent the night at Kiba's house, destroying them. Yeah, she would get Akamaru a chew toy. He'll love it.

Lifting her gaze away from the assortment of dog tags, teal eyes soon landed upon a patch of red hair. The splash of crimson extremely hard to miss in the sea of blondes and brunettes, and began to drift towards a forehead with the kanji for _love_ tattooed upon the creamy-white skin and then farther down to a pair of cold, cyan eyes…

Eyes that just happened to be starring right back at her.

Amaya quickly darted her gaze away. She was certain that she felt her blood run cold for a split second. The intensity of that gaze… it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end but she had the sudden urge to approach him. She quickly closed her eyes, her fingers gripping the nearest surface in an attempt to steady herself. Her mind concentrated simply on the act of breathing. Almost hesitantly, she opened her eyes again, making sure to avoid looking at the redhead again, and walked out of the shop. She desperately tried to avoid looking at the redhead again, not wishing to relive that feeling again. Why did she feel as if she knew him? Amaya was certain that she had never met him before. She stuffed her hands into her pockets, tightly curling her fingers into a fist. All she had to do was keep walking, place one foot in front of the other.

Looking up, her eyes caught sight of a corner. She never thought that such a simple thing as a corner would be her safe haven. Quickening her steps, she soon rounded the corner and finally let out a breath she did not know she was holding. That was weird… Teal eyes quickly glanced behind her. Upon finding out that she was not being followed, the kunoichi decided it would be best to try to forget what had just happened and instead focus once more on her original objective, finding Kiba and Akamaru a gift. Thankfully, her teal eyes landed upon a pet shop. Pivoting on her heel, she made her way towards the establishment, hoping that she would never see that kid again…

* * *

… _Two Hours Later…_

Bag in hand, Amaya walked down the streets of Konoha as her teal eyes quickly scanned each window display as she passed them. It had taken her a while but Amaya had finally decided upon a gift for Akamaru. Inside the plastic bag was a chew toy in the shape of a bone. The kunoichi had also decided to buy the pup a bag of his favorite treats. She smiled, knowing that Akamaru would be thrilled at the gifts.

Now all she had to worry about was what to get Kiba… She had decided that she wanted to get him some jerky in accordance with previous years, though she still wanted to get her friend something else that was not edible. She sighed; such an endeavor would surely prove difficult. Perhaps she should stick to something simple and avoid over-complicating it…

Walking towards one of the many displays, Amaya heard the distinct sound of her stomach growling. As she placed a hand on her midsection, her eyes quickly scanned the surrounding buildings in search of an eating establishment. Thankfully, just across the street was a dango shop. She smiled, they always had amazing green tea there, and from what her aunt always told her, the dumplings were great as well. Her path soon altered in the direction of the restaurant as her stomach decided to growl again. Once inside, she found the one unoccupied table at the establishment and sat down upon the wooden bench. Her eyes soon began to look over the menu already placed upon the table. If she came here without trying the dango, Amaya was certain that her aunt would pummel her. While the thought of getting into another fight with her did not scare the kunoichi in the least, she also came to the same conclusion. Why go to a dango shop and _not_ order the dango?

Glancing up, the kunoichi saw that a waitress had approached her table and was appearing to fidget, based on that Amaya assumed that she had been standing there for a few moments, perhaps trying to grab the young girl's attention.

"Are you ready to order miss?"

Amaya nodded, "Yeah, I'd like the dango with the red bean paste and a glass of green tea."

The young woman quickly jotted down the order before looking up to smile at the kunoichi. "It'll be ready in a few moments."

"Thank you."

As the waitress walked away, Amaya pressed her elbow onto the wooden table and allowed her chin to rest upon her open palm. Her eyes began to scan the small establishment. Due to the time of day, every table was currently occupied by some Konoha citizens. Truthfully, Amaya was surprised that her aunt was not currently there. Perhaps she was busy on some sort of mission, or the more likely option was she was still in bed sleeping away the final minutes of the morning in an attempt to rid herself of the effects of the alcohol she drank the night before. At the thought, Amaya's lips curved upwards into a smile. Occurrences like those helped to clearly demonstrate that she was the adopted one amongst the three sisters. Such antics never ceased to amuse Amaya while clearly causing Suzuki to worry constantly about her younger sister.

Teal eyes soon began to extend their gaze towards the street, where several other citizens were going about their day whether it be shopping or just enjoying the June morning. Soon the waitress approached the table again, leaving Amaya's order as well as her bill upon the table before turning around and walking away once more. The kunoichi then slowly readjusted her position until she was sitting upright. Reaching forward, she grabbed one of the sticks of dango and promptly inserted it into her mouth. Once the savory flavors hit her taste buds, Amaya's face broke out into another grin as she slowly chewed the dango in order to savor the taste for as long as possible. Her aunt was right; this was a great dango stand.

Reaching for her cup of tea, Amaya allowed her gaze to once more roam the nearby street and observe the many passer-bys. Just as her gaze flickered back to her dango, a splash of color appeared in her peripheral vision. Forcing herself to stay facing forward, Amaya's body slightly tensed up. The feeling from earlier was back… chills were running up and down her spine again and she was certain that if she turned her gaze to face the sudden splash of color her teal eyes would once more meet with a pair of cyan ones.

Her mind began to race. How did he find her again? Was he stalking her? She severely doubted that was the case. Before today she had never seen the kid but if he wasn't stalking her… yet, that is… why was did it appear that he was suddenly so fixated on her? While Amaya was completely freaking out, she could not deny the strange feeling coursing through her system again. What if that kid was also feeling the same strange sensation? That could very well explain his appearances.

Sucking in a deep breath, Amaya allowed her gaze to travel to the patch of red hair just across the street from her. Sure enough, her teal eyes immediately locked with a pair of cyan ones for the second time that day. Hairs on the back of her neck stood up as her fingers gripped the edge of her table, willing herself to stay put. Forcing her eyes to close, the kunoichi focused only upon her breathing in an attempt to block out everything around her. He couldn't stand there forever… right? So until he… or this feeling… left her she would simply force herself to focus on other things.

Keeping her eyes closed, Amaya turned her head towards the dango she had ordered. Her mind only focused upon the simple motions of reaching for her dango, placing it in her mouth, and chewing upon the substance. She was only regretful that she would no longer be able to fully enjoy the flavors of the substance. As she reached for her glass of tea, a booming voice rang through the air.

"Amaya!"

Smiling, Amaya quickly turned her head around to face the voice's source. For a mere moment, the strange sensations left her as she looked upon the blonde boy in orange. A large grin was plastered on his face as he walked towards her.

"Hey Naruto," she replied while motioning for him to sit down. "What's up?"

The blonde quickly took the offered seat, "Nothin' really." His gaze quickly landed on the lone dango stick on Amaya's plate. "What's up with you?"

Amaya shrugged, her gaze also watching the dango stick in a protective manner, glad to have a distraction from the foreign feeling for now. "Same… Though this kid is really freaking me out…"

"Who?" Naruto asked as he looked up. His blue gaze soon started to dart around the establishment protectively, seeming ready to pounce upon whomever it was that was creeping out his friend.

Closing her eyes as to avoid risking looking in _his_ direction again… it seemed as if avoiding his gaze lessened the feeling… she jerked her head towards where she remembered he was previously standing. "The redhead… I think he's stalking me…"

Blue eyes quickly darted towards the indicated direction, soon his gaze filled with confusion as he looked back at Amaya. "Um… Amaya-chan… There's no redhead there…"

"What?" Amaya questioned, allowing her teal eyes to snap open. Her gaze quickly darted towards where he was standing… only to find out that he was no longer there. She sighed. That's why the feeling suddenly disappeared…

Now a new feeling coursed through her system… not that strange desire but a deep sadness, wishing for him to return to her…

Who was that kid?

* * *

… _Three Hours Later; Amaya's Home…_

Opening the door, Amaya quickly strode inside and kicked her shoes off. "Oba-san! I'm home!" she shouted while walking into the living area, quickly dropping Kiba and Akamaru's gifts on the ground. Upon glancing around, she saw that Suzuki wasn't there. It was too early for her to have left for Kaori… maybe she got a last-minute mission. It wouldn't have been the first time.

"Anyone home?!"

"I'm in my room!"

Turning on her heel, Amaya quickly made her way to Suzuki's bedroom. Walking inside, the young kunoichi saw that her aunt was gathering an assortment of weapons, poisons, and antidotes. Amaya padded towards the bed and sat upon its soft surface. "Got a mission?"

Nodding, Suzuki sat down next to her niece. "Yes, I just got back from the Hokage's office. I shouldn't be gone much more than three days. My sister knows I'll be gone, so if you can leave Kaori there if needed." She said with a smile.

"Yeah…" Amaya said with a chuckle. "We wouldn't want a repeat of last time…"

Suzuki giggled softly while shaking her head at the memory. "I would care to avoid such a situation again." She turned to face Amaya, "So how was your day?"

Amaya's smile grew, "Good. We got registration forms for the Chunin Exam."

"Really?" Suzuki questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Amaya nodded, "Yeah. It starts on the first. Why?"

Suzuki shrugged, "It's nothing Mei-chan. Just make sure to be careful."

"Don't worry, I will."

"Good, I know you'll make us all proud Mei-chan." Standing up, Suzuki ruffled her niece's hair before padding towards the door. "Make sure to pick up your sister and there's food in the fridge."

Amaya nodded, "Okay, good luck Oba-san."

"Thanks Mei-chan, good-bye."

Standing up, Amaya walked towards the threshold and watched as her aunt slipped on her shoes and proceeded to walk out the door. Once her aunt was out of sight, Amaya's lips curved into a smile once more as she leaned against the wall.

"I'm taking the Chunin Exam… Wow…"

* * *

… _Four Days Later…_

"This sucks!" Amaya groaned as she crossed her arms.

Toshi quickly snapped his head towards her, his dirt brown eyes glaring at her. "Shut up, unless you want us killed."

Amaya rolled her eyes, "As if they could."

Hearing the door open, Amaya's teal gaze quickly glanced over towards the newcomers. Upon seeing a head of messy blonde hair, the kunoichi smiled. So Naruto and his team were taking the exams as well. Unfortunately, her smile soon morphed into a grimace when remembering what that also meant. If Naruto was taking the exam so were Sakura and that know-it-all Sasuke Uchiha… She groaned, hoping that she wouldn't be forced to endure either one of them for too long. The kunoichi was unsure if she could handle it.

"Well, look who's here…"

Glancing up, Amaya smirked at the voice's owner. "I didn't know they allowed mutts to take the test," she chuckled.

Kiba's eyes narrowed, "Very funny."

"Yeah, I know."

"Hey you porker! Back off! He's mine!"

"Miss Forehead, they let you in? Still got those big frown-lines on your billboard brow I see..."

"Leave my forehead out of it!"

Groaning, Amaya pinched her nose bridge. "Wonder if either of them will figure out he hates both of them…"

"I doubt it," Kiba replied while slightly shaking his head.

"Then can I kill them now?" Amaya asked as a devious glint twinkled in her eyes.

Kiba chuckled, "Not yet." He smirked while glancing over; it seemed as if all the other genin were gravitating towards one another. "Though we could mess with them a bit…"

"Sounds like a plan," she responded with a smirk of her own, easily falling into step beside Kiba as they walked over towards the small gathering.

"Well, well, whaddya know… it looks like the whole gang's back together again," Kiba interjected.

"Oh… hi Naruto…" Hinata greeted.

Amaya smiled as Naruto glanced over at Hinata, causing her to quickly turn away and blush madly. The kunoichi shook her head as Naruto's face contorted into a confused appearance while still looking at the shy Hyuga girl. The raven-girl crossed her arms, both amused at how dense Naruto was but feeling sorry for Hinata that the ninja was so dense as to not see just how much Hinata liked him. Glancing back at Naruto, Amaya smiled.

"Hey, blondie!" she called out, quickly getting the attentions of both Naruto, and unknowingly Ino as well. "Fancy meeting you here."

Naruto smirked, "Hey Amaya!"

"You guys too huh?" Shikamaru questioned. "Man, everyone's here for this stupid thing…"

"Would you please stop complaining!" Amaya snapped as she quickly directed her attention towards him, narrowing her teal gaze. "Unless you wanna be my first victim…"

Shikamaru tilted his head in her direction before closing his eyes and sighing. "Troublesome woman…"

"What was that?"

Smiling, Kiba stepped forward in an attempt to stop a fight between Amaya and Shikamaru before it had a real chance to begin. "Yep, here we all are… The Twelve Rookies…" he chuckled, pretending to ignore Amaya's pissed off expression. He knew how much she hated to be cut off when fighting with someone but he felt it was needed. She could always have fun later. "This is gonna be fun! At least… for those of us good enough to make the cut…" His gaze quickly landed on Sasuke as he smirked. "Right Sasuke?"

"Kiba… careful you don't get overconfident," Sasuke replied, traces of what seemed to be a smile playing upon his normally drab features.

"Just wait, we're gonna blow you guys away! We've been training like crazy!" Kiba replied.

Naruto narrowed his blue gaze, slightly annoyed. "What do you think we've been doing? Sitting around picking daisies?" He held up an arm and pointed accusingly at the Inuzuka. "You don't know what training means!"

Amaya snorted, "I know Pinky doesn't."

Balling her hand into a fist, Sakura's green eyes darted towards Amaya. "What was that?"

"Hard of hearing?" she retorted with a smirk. "I said you don't know what training means."

Sakura opened her mouth as if planning to further the argument and Amaya tilted her head to the side, waiting for whatever she planned to say. However, the words that soon floated into her ears were not from Sakura. They were from someone she didn't even recognize…

"Hey, you guys… You might wanna try keeping it down a little. I mean, no offense, but you're the twelve rookies right? Fresh out of the academy?" he questioned as his coal gaze quickly swept over the ninja standing in front of him. "I wouldn't go making a spectacle of yourselves… Just cool it; this isn't a class field trip."

"Well who asked you?!" Ino interjected. "Who are you?!"

"I'm Kabuto Yakushi, but really… look around you, you've made quite an impression…"

Glancing over at the large crowd behind her, Amaya smirked upon realizing that pretty much everyone there was looking at them. While the reasoning behind those looks wasn't entirely good, Amaya was glad that they had caught the attentions of the other candidates. If they only knew of her as one of the rookies, they would surely go easy on her… then she could show all of them not to take her so lightly. Shrugging, Amaya's gaze went back to Kabuto and quickly began to asses him. His appearance was normal enough. He was wearing a sleeveless, high-collared purple shirt over a short-sleeved white tee as well as a white piece of cloth around his waist. On his legs, he wore purple pants that led to a pair of blue shinobi sandals. His shuriken holster was on his right thigh, resting beside his hanging arms with purple-fingerless gloves. Amaya smirked, this guy didn't look like much of a threat.

"See those guys?" Kabuto questioned. "They're from the Rain Village, very touchy… they all are. This exam makes everyone tense and you don't wanna rub them the wrong way right now."

Amaya rolled her eyes, "What if I _do_ wanna rub them the wrong way?" she questioned, quickly earning dirty looks from her fellow rookies… aside from Naruto and Kiba.

"That wouldn't be too smart miss…"

"Mizuno…" she replied, a smile playing upon her lips as she faced him straight on. "The name's Amaya Mizuno… you should remember that."

"It would still be wise for you to avoid making a scene…" Kabuto added before shrugging. "But you can't help it… I mean how could you know how things work, you're just rookies. You remind me of myself a while back."

"Kabuto… is that your name?" Sakura asked.

Amaya groaned and shook her head at the unneeded question. Was Pinky _not_ paying attention?

"Yeah…"

"This isn't the first time you've taken the exam?"

Kabuto shook his head, "No… it's uh… my seventh…" He shrugged, "Well they're held twice a year… so this'll be my fourth year."

"Wow… a veteran… you must really be an expert by now," Sakura answered.

"Yeah, some expert, he hasn't passed," Amaya interjected while rolling her eyes. She wondered why they were bothering to listen to this guy talk. He was their _competition_ and there was no reason to get too attached… or winding up in a bad situation because you suddenly felt bad for someone. Sighing, Amaya allowed herself to lean against Kiba as she shut her eyes.

Kabuto laughed nervously, "Well seventh time's the charm… that's what they say…"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night…" Amaya muttered.

"So I guess all those rumors about the exam being tough are true…" Shikamaru added with a groan. "Oh man… I knew this was going to be a drag."

"Lazy ass…" the kunoichi added, only loud enough for her and Kiba to hear.

Glancing down, Kiba chuckled and shook his head, allowing her to lean against her as she was currently doing. It had been so long since they had a chance to just hang out… though unfortunately this exam wouldn't allow them much time to just chill and catch up. He sighed inwardly, he would have to change that soon…

"Hang on, don't give up hope yet…" Kabuto said before beginning to rummage in his pocket. "Maybe I can help you kids out a little… with my…" he spread a deck of cards out in front of his face, "ninja info cards."

Sakura tilted her head to the side, "What the heck are those?"

"It's hard to explain… but these cards have been chakra encoded with everything I've learned over the past four years…" he bent down to place the cards on the ground. "I've got more than two hundred of them… so you see, I haven't been _completely_ wasting my time. They might not look like much to the naked eye." He flipped one of them over. "In fact, they appear blank… Don't want just anyone seeing this stuff."

Suddenly becoming silent, Kabuto placed his left index finger upon the card. The object then began to spin around counterclockwise as he intently watched it.

"What are you doing?" Toshi questioned, his arms crossed over his chest as Ringo stood next to him, watching closely.

"You see I'm using my chakra… to reveal their secrets. Like this for example…" he brought his right hand up towards his face, both his pointer finger and index finger straight up. A small cloud of smoke suddenly surrounded the card and once it became visible again the surface was completely changed. No longer was it the blank card from a few moments ago.

"Awesome! A map!" Sakura paused. "Of what?"

Amaya turned her head, burying her face into the back of Kiba's jacket. "Oh God please let her die… Please…" she groaned. "So… stupid…"

Shaking his head, Kiba chuckled again. "It's okay, I'm sure you'll get away from her soon enough."

"Promise?" Amaya asked, tilting her head up to look at the Inuzuka.

Akamaru yipped as Kiba smiled, "Promise."

Smiling, the raven kunoichi redirected her attention to the geeky-looking grey-haired shinobi once more. His black eyes were looking up at the twelve genin in questioning, but his gaze was only answered with a dull silence, only broken apart by the ever-continuous sound of Choji munching on another bag of potato chips. Raising an eyebrow, Amaya began to wonder what it was that she had missed. However, she was doubtful it was of the utmost importance and even if it was, she was sure that Hinata would quickly inform her after this little pow-wow broke apart.

"It's to foster friendship between nations of course… international brotherhood and all that and its true enough… as far as it goes."

"But there's another reason," Sasuke added.

Kabuto nodded, "Yeah… you see the important thing is that this way they can carefully regulate the total number of shinobi that end up in each village, thereby maintaining the balance of power."

"Oh yeah… balance of power…" Naruto stated before closing his eyes and groaning.

"Balance of power… big deal, it's all a drag…" Shikamaru drawled.

Another small cloud of smoke surrounded the card, once it dissipated, the surface was blank once more. "If the balance isn't maintained one nation could wind up with many more shinobi than its neighbors and it might be tempted to attack them. So they try to maintain the status quo. It makes sense… I suppose." Kabuto shrugged.

Sasuke took a step forward, "Do those cards of yours have any info on the other candidates? Individually?"

"They might… You have someone special in mind?"

Sasuke narrowed his gaze. "I might."

"Well, I can't promise my information is complete or perfect… but I've got something on just about everyone. Including you guys of course. So which one is it? Tell me anything you know about them… a description, where they're from, whatever…" Kabuto held up a single card. "Anything at all."

"He's Gaara of the Desert and there's Rock Lee of the Leaf Village while you're at it."

Kabuto looked disappointed. "Man that's no fun, you even know their names. That makes it easy."

Within mere seconds, he began to search through his deck of cards in a hunt for the two requested ones. Stepping away from Kiba, Amaya squatted down near the ground as she watched the nerd. Maybe he wasn't going to be completely useless. Teal eyes glanced over at the Uchiha, his gaze never once wavered from the elder genin standing before him. Her gaze soon shifted back towards Kabuto. Now he held two cards in front of his face, his gaze watching Sasuke.

"Here they are."

If possible, Sasuke's gaze grew more intense as he looked at the two cards. "Show 'em to me…"

Kabuto placed one of the cards on the ground, pressing his index finger upon its surface. "Okay, first up is Rock Lee…" Smoke rose up around the card, revealing the information hidden within.

"Looks like he's about a year older than you guys," Kabuto glanced up at Amaya. "Or in your case, the same age." He looked back at the card. "Mission experience eleven C-ranks and twenty D-ranks… His squad leader is Guy and in the last twelve months his taijutsu has radically improved but his other skills are pretty shaky… Last year he got a lot of attention as a Genin but for some reason, he chose not to participate in the Chunin Exam… This'll be his first time as a candidate, same as you guys… His teammates are Tenten and Neji Hyuga…"

Amaya glanced up at Hinata, noticing as her eyes widened ever so slightly. She knew very well that her and her cousin did not get along well, due to her being a part of the Main Branch of the family and he a part of a lesser one. While she knew nothing more about the guy, Amaya already could sense that she would not get along well with him either. Curling her fingers into a loose fist, Amaya looked back towards Kabuto, who was repeating the process with the second card.

"Okay, now for Gaara of the Desert…"

Once the image appeared before Amaya, she felt her blood run cold and the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. It was… _him_, the kid who freaked her out so badly only four days ago. She swallowed past a lump in her throat as she slowly adjusted herself so she was sitting upon the cold surface below her, tuning out the conversation still going on around her. As she sat there, the only thing she was grateful for was that feeling hadn't overtaken her yet. Perhaps that was because she hadn't _seen_ him yet. Looking behind her towards the crowd, she knew without a doubt that he was there amongst the other genin.

The kunoichi started to stand, her teal gaze quickly locking with Kiba's worried eyes. She dismissively shook her head, acting as if it was nothing to worry about. There was no reason to bring him into this when she had no real idea as to what _this_ even was.

Forcing herself to push those thoughts from her mind, she tuned back into the conversation commencing around her. Quickly glancing at each of the other rookies, she noticed that they all suddenly seemed worried about something. Sighing, Amaya began to wish that she had heard what just happened… Perhaps it was for the best that she didn't know. It could easily save her much worry about things that might not even matter in the long haul.

However, one look at Naruto sent a surge of worry through her. Only three meters away from her, the blonde boy was visibly shaking. If even he was worried, perhaps Amaya should consider feeling the same. That kid was never afraid of anything, always boasting about how he would become Hokage… If he was falling to pieces so soon, it couldn't be good. Gulping, she stole a glance at the other candidates. Could this exam really be that bad? Shaking her head, Amaya firmly decided it couldn't. In order to become a chunin, one couldn't allow themselves to break down so easily. If one did, they couldn't hope to survive in the ninja world… especially if another age of war struck them all.

Sadly, such thoughts were of little help to the worry encasing her mind. She felt pitiful for acting like a helpless child… afraid so easily of the uncertain and quickly escalating such worries beyond earthly-possible proportions.

A sudden scream soon bombarded her ears, causing her to jerk her head towards the sudden noise. Upon noticing its origin, the kunoichi smiled broadly as Naruto defiantly pointed towards the crowd behind her.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki and I'm gonna beat every one of ya! Believe it!"

The sudden outburst quickly caused Amaya to laugh. "Why didn't I think of that first?" she thought aloud.

Naruto placed his hands on the back of his head, still smiling proudly. "Yeah! I feel a lot better now!"

"Uh… can you say that again a little louder?" Kiba questioned. "Didn't quite catch it."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "You moron, are you trying to get everybody in the place to hate our guts or what?"

Amaya sighed and closed her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. The blonde's sudden outburst quickly lifted a weight off her shoulders. She would be just fine. She didn't dare intervene at the various insults being thrown his way, or Sakura grabbing him and screaming at him. While she liked the kid more than most, she wasn't willing to broadcast it to the rest of the room. Making relationships outside of teammates could prove useful later on if she needed some help for any reason. The raven smiled, most thought she was a nitwit equal in intelligence to Naruto, but while she didn't have the brains of Shikamaru, she was fortunate enough to have a decent idea occasionally.

Suddenly, she heard the distinct sound of kunai colliding with the ground. Opening her eyes, Amaya watched as Kabuto slid along the ground until he reached the back wall where a ninja quickly appeared. The ninja quickly swung his hand towards Kabuto's face in an attempt to land a blow on his left cheek. Thankfully, Kabuto was able to lead his head back far enough just in time to avoid the blow. Straightening his posture, Kabuto smirked… only moments before his glasses shattered and several pieces crashed onto the ground.

"Oh I get it… so it was that kind of attack…" Kabuto mused while taking his glasses off.

Sasuke quickly stomped forward. "Hang on I saw it all, it dodged the attack. How'd that happen?"

"It must've come closer than it looked…" Shikamaru clenched his jaw slightly. "Look at him acting like it was nothing, real tough guy…"

Glancing back over at Kabuto, Amaya noticed his black eyes going wide for a split second before he fell forward onto his knees, panting for air. A mere second later, he threw his head forward and emptied the contents of his stomach onto the ground. Amaya quickly darted her gaze and covered her mouth, concentrating on not throwing up as well.

"Kabuto what's wrong?" Sakura asked, eyes filling with concern. "What is it?"

Both Naruto and Sakura quickly ran to either side of the shinobi, each placing a hand upon his shoulder.

Kabuto slowly started to sit up, "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Not such a tough guy after all I guess…" one of the assailants mused aloud. His only visible eye glinted with satisfaction while the rest of his face was covered with bandages. "Maybe that's why he's on his seventh try…"

The one standing on his right smirked. "Write this on your little card, punk: the genin from the sound village will be chunin when this is over guaranteed."

Narrowing her gaze upon the sound genin, Amaya began to take a step towards the sound ninja. She was aching to fight someone and she would happily settle for the arrogant boy from the little village. However, before she was able to begin her assault a large cloud of smoke in the front of the room quickly grabbed her attention.

"Alright you baby-faced degenerates pipe down and listen up!"

The smoke quickly dissipated, revealing over a dozen ninja in grey uniforms standing behind a burly-looking man with a scarred up face wearing the same uniform underneath a black trench coat. His eyes quickly gazed over the several candidates standing before him.

"It's time to begin. I'm Ibiki Morino, your proctor, and from this moment your worst enemy."


End file.
